MINERAL DEVELOPMENT ACT 1994

LAWS OF MALAYSIA ONLINE VERSION OF UPDATED TEXT OF REPRINT Act 525 MINERAL DEVELOPMENT ACT 1994 As at 1 January 2013 2 MINERAL DEVELOPMENT ACT 1994 Date of Royal Assent … … … … … … 29 August 1994 Date of Publication in the Gazette … … 8 September 1994 Latest amendment made by Act A1327 which came into operation on … … … … … … … …25 January 2008 PREVIOUS REPRINTS First Reprint ... ... ... ... 2002 Second Reprint ... ... ... ... 2006 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 525 MINERAL DEVELOPMENT ACT 1994 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title, commencement and application 2. Application to fossicking, panning, etc. 3. Interpretation PART II ADMINISTRATION 4. Appointment of the Director General of Mines, Deputy Director General, etc. 5. Functions and duties of Director General 6. Delegation of functions or duties by Director General 7. Functions and duties of Director 8. Functions and duties of Assistant Director PART III REGULATION OF EXPLORATION AND MINING 9. Holder of mineral tenement to submit copy of mineral tenement and change of address to Director, etc. 10. Submission of operational mining scheme 11. Notices of intent to explore or carry out development work 4 Laws of Malaysia Section 12. Compliance with operational mining scheme 13. Good and safe practices and environmental standards 14. Manager of mine 15. Directions by manager of mine 16. Plans to be furnished 17. Record books on operations 18. Effluent water 19. Erosion 20. Mine abandonment PART IV ACCIDENT AND INQUIRY 21. Proceedings upon accident and dangerous occurrence 22. Procedure for inquiry PART V ENFORCEMENT, INVESTIGATION, EVIDENCE, OFFENCES AND PENALTIES Chapter 1 — Enforcement and Investigation 23. Enforcement by mines officer 24. Power of investigation 25. Power to require attendance of person acquainted with case 26. Power to examine person acquainted with case 27. Power of arrest, seizure and investigation 28. Search with warrant 29. Search without warrant 30. Temporary return of seized thing 31. Forfeiture of things seized 32. Cost of holding seized thing 33. No costs or damages arising from seizure to be recoverable 34. Power to stop and search conveyance ACT 525 Mineral Development Chapter 2 — Evidence Section 35. Certificate as to the value of mineral or mineral product, etc. 36. Sample 37. Certificate of analysis 38. Protection of informers Chapter 3 — Offences and Penalties 39. Various offences 40. Penalty for failure to submit or comply with operational mining scheme 41. Offences in relation to protection of abandoned shafts, etc. 42. Tampering with, removing, damaging or destroying any thing seized 43. Penalty for failure to comply with lawful order 44. Offences with respect to information 45. Disappearance or destruction of any thing seized 46. Negligent conduct 47. Obstruction of mines officer 48. Use of confidential information 49. Abuse of power 50. Attempt and abetment 51. Offences committed by body corporate 52. Offences committed by partner, agent or servant 53. Penalty for continuing offences 54. General penalty 55. Compounding of offences Chapter 4 — General 56. Institution of proceedings and conduct of prosecution 57. Recovery of money due to Government 5 6 Laws of Malaysia PART VI MISCELLANEOUS Section 58. Prohibition against disclosure of information 59. Prohibition on abuse of information obtained in official capacity 60. Authority card 61. Protection of officers 62. Service of notice PART VII REGULATIONS 63. Regulations PART VIII TRANSITIONAL AND SAVING PROVISIONS, ETC. 64. Transitional and saving provisions 65. Conflict of laws ACT 525 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 525 MINERAL DEVELOPMENT ACT 1994 An Act to provide for the inspection and regulation of the exploration and mining of minerals and mineral ores and for other matters connected therewith. [1 August 1998, P.U. (B) 297/1998] BE IT ENACTED by Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: PART I PRELIMINARY Short title, commencement and application 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Mineral Development Act 1994 and shall come into force on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint. (2) This Act shall apply throughout Malaysia; however the Minister may by order suspend the operation of the whole or any of the provisions of this Act in any State. Application to fossicking, panning, etc. 2. This Act shall apply to the fossicking, panning, prospecting, exploring, mining and processing of minerals and mineral ores and to mines, minerals and mineral ores generally. 8 Laws of Malaysia ACT 525 Interpretation 3. (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — “analysis” means the determination of the composition of a specimen or sample by physical or chemical method or by a combination of both methods; “Assistant Director” means an Assistant Director of Mines appointed under section 4; “conveyance” includes a ship, train, vehicle, aircraft or any other means of transport by which persons or goods can be carried; “development work” means any work carried out in relation to the physical construction of a mine; “Director” means a Director of Mines appointed under section 4 and includes any Deputy Director of Mines; “Director General” means the Director General of Mines appointed under section 4 and includes any Deputy Director General of Mines; “Director General of Geological Survey” means the Director General of Geological Survey appointed under the Geological Survey Act 1974 [Act 129]; “dulang licence” means a dulang licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to panning; “exploration licence” means an exploration licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to exploration; “explore” means to search for mineral deposits and includes prospecting; “fossick” means to search for and to extract minerals by using simple implements and to remove the minerals as samples, specimens or lapidary work without any intention to sell the minerals; “fossicking licence” means a fossicking licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to fossicking; Mineral Development 9 “individual mining licence” means an individual mining licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to mining; “manager” means the person appointed as manager under section 14; “mine”, when used as a noun, means any place, excavation or working wherein, whereon or whereby any operation connected with mining is carried on together with all buildings, premises, erections, water reservoirs, tailing ponds, waste, other dumps and appliances belonging or appertaining thereto above or below the ground or in or below the sea for the purpose of winning, obtaining or extracting any mineral by any mode or method or for the purpose of dressing, treating or preparing mineral ores; “mineral” means any substance whether in solid, liquid or gaseous form occurring— (a) naturally; (b) as a result of mining in or on the earth; or (c) as a result of mining in or under the sea or sea-bed, formed by or subject to a geological process, but excludes water, “rock material” as defined in the National Land Code [Act 56 of 1965] and “petroleum” as defined in the Petroleum Mining Act 1966 [Act 95]; “mineral ore” means any mineral of economic interest from which one or more valuable constituents may profitably be recovered by treatment; “mineral processing” means any activity whereby minerals or mineral ores are treated for the beneficiation thereof but excludes smelting and refining; “mineral tenement” means a fossicking licence, dulang licence, individual mining licence, prospecting licence, exploration licence, proprietary mining licence, mining lease, or any of them for the purpose of exploration or mining of minerals or mineral ores, as the 10 Laws of Malaysia ACT 525 case may be, issued under any Federal or State law regulating mineral tenements; “mines officer” means the Director General of Mines, any Director of Mines, Assistant Director of Mines, Senior Mining Assistant, Mining Assistant or any other officer duly authorized in writing by the Director General; “mining land” means any land in respect of which a proprietary mining licence or mining lease issued or granted under any written law relating to mining is for the time being in force; “mining lease” means a mining lease for the time being in force granted under any written law regulating mining; “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for mining and minerals; “notice” includes any notification, assessment, instrument or other document authorized or required by this Act to be served on any person or body; “operational mining scheme” means an operational mining scheme approved under section 10; “police officer” has the meaning assigned to it in the Police Act 1967 [Act 344]; “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations; “proprietary mining licence” means a proprietary mining licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to mining; “prospecting licence” means a prospecting licence for the time being in force issued under any written law relating to prospecting; “sample” means a fraction of naturally occurring matter deemed to be indicative of the mass of which it forms a part; “specimen” means a fraction of naturally occurring matter not necessarily representative of the mass of which it forms a part; Mineral Development 11 “to mine” means intentionally to win minerals and includes any operation directly or indirectly and necessary therefore or incidental thereto, and “mining” shall be construed accordingly; “to pan” means to wash or sift with a pan, dulang or rake for the purpose of obtaining minerals; “treat” means to subject to any process whereby chemical or physical change takes place in the substance subjected thereto; “waste” includes any discarded overburden material, tailing, any intermediate product from mining or mineral processing stockpiled for further operations, water treated or stored in mining or mineral processing, and any chemical substance temporarily or permanently withdrawn from such operations; “waste retention area” means any area defined for the retention of waste and includes any area where works are employed for the purification of water contained in such waste. (2) Subject to subsection (1) and unless the context otherwise requires, all words and expressions used in this Act which are defined in the National Land Code shall be deemed to have the meaning assigned to them by that Code. PART II ADMINISTRATION Appointment of the Director General of Mines, Deputy Director General, etc. 4. (1) The Minister shall appoint a public officer to be the Director General of Mines for the purpose of performing the functions and duties assigned to him under this Act. (2) The Minister shall also appoint such numbers of Deputy Director Generals of Mines, Directors of Mines, Deputy Directors of Mines, Assistant Directors of Mines, Senior Mining Assistants, Mining Assistants and such other officers as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act. 12 Laws of Malaysia ACT 525 (3) All officers appointed under subsection (2) shall be subject to the control, direction and supervision of the Director General. (4) All officers appointed under this Act shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of the Penal Code [Act 574]. Functions and duties of Director General 5. The Director General shall— (a) be responsible for the administration and enforcement of this Act; (b) exercise supervision and control on the safety aspects relating to mines and to the fossicking, panning, exploration, mining, possession, movement, storage and processing of minerals and mineral ores in accordance with this Act; (c) obtain info